Back by popular demand ... well ... sorta.

How are you doing my friends ?  

I present to you the "Cole's Notes" version of my life.

Life has been a series of woodland rambles,  gardening fun and explorations of this beautiful province.  In other words, not much has changed since I paused Blogging.

As you may know by now, Winter is my fourth favourite season.  

But now it's almost May and Winter is well behind us.  

Dexter and Sooki are wonderful companions. Sooki is on several medications to help lessen the pain from her leg surgeries.  As she is now well over 13 years old, I suspected that winter would put an end to her; but happily it did not.  She still looks forward to going for walks.  Now the warmer weather is coming, she enjoys lying in the sun on the back deck.

In November my daughter Kaitlyn, went to England to spend three months with a friend there.  Well, that three months turned into six; and though she is coming back in May, her heart remains in London.  As a result, I am experiencing "empty nest syndrome" at age 73 !

My dog walks are also another way to get out and observe nature.  The photos I take I then post to iNaturalist.

I tell you more about my explorations.  Next time ...

I'm hoping to keep in touch via this Blog.  However I gather that Blogger.com doesn't send out notices of new posts.  I send notices of new posts out to an email list of friends and I'll share too to FaceBook.  I don't know if commenting is still functioning either.  Guess we'll all find out together  I would like to hear from you either by a comment or email.

So ... what have you been up to ?

August adventures

 I've lived in Nova Scotia 12 years and as of a few weeks ago I had never visited Yarmouth.  I had travelled to the tip top of the province at Meat Cove, but had never ventured to the "bottom".

Happily that has now been rectified.

"I KEEM"  "HUT DOGZ"  "SAMMICHIZ"   

Just below Yarmouth, poking into the open Atlantic, warning ships at sea, is Cape Forchou; a well-known tourist destination.  These are some photos from along the spit of land leading to the lighthouse. Loads of photo op spots.

My travelling companion is always up to pose for a photo.

In spite of Covid, or perhaps because of it, the lighthouse is a popular destination.

The door was propped open revealing the narrowness of the unique "apple core"  lighthouse design.  

There is a pretty scenic walking trail around the cape.

Another goal on my adventure was to visit Shag Harbour.  You know about Shag Harbour ?

                                  

It was reported as a downed plane.  Many local fisher folk rushed out in their boats to look for survivors.  All they found was foam on the water and very briefly, lights under the water.  It is the World's best goverment documented UFO sighting and yet few are aware of it.

~~~~~~~~~~

One of the amazing things about Nova Scotia is the unexpected places you were NOT planning on visiting; but simply stumbled across.  Case in point: Cape Sable Island.

Dexter and I had many different beaches all to ourselves.  Keep in mind that this is a warm day in August !

It's hard not to stop as I drive down Nova Scotia backroads, having glimpsed a tucked away beach.  And once we stop, at the very least a wander is in order.

That teeny lighthouse in the distance is Cape Forchou!

Turns out Dexter is a marvellous travelling companion and we can't wait for our next adventure.

Things I miss ...

 Well, I'll tell ya what is DON'T miss; I don't miss Winter.

At least Spring brings the distraction of gardening.    The garden doesn't look like this right now, but it will in a month or two or three.

And of course the dog walking never stops; both on and off leash.

              

And of course the nearby woods are always there to be explored.  

Sorry.  I lost my train of thought.  Yeah.  Oh, I know, I was going to tell you about missng stuff.  I was gonna haul out a slew of lovely photos of Fundy; pics of Scott's Bay, Grand Pre and Hall's Harbour and engage in a moderate pity party.

I was going to share a lament for friends I miss.  So far it's been FIVE birthday get-togethers with Sara and Kelly that haven't happened.

And of course I miss being able to visit family and friends in Ontario and England and ... Cow Bay !

And choir !  Don't get me going on how much I miss choir !

                                                                        BUT

I am still here.  Fundy still exists.  I haven't lost any family or friends.  I've had my first shot.

There will be a tomorrow, and more tomorrows after that.

Things haven't really been missed -- they've just been postponed.  

And when we do get together again think how much we will appreciate being together.

And when we can go places we haven't gone in ages, think how mucy we will appreciate being there.

Sending you virtual hugs and my sincere wish that you find what you CAN do, and enjoy it ... until the day you can do even more.

Leave a comment or send me an email telling me about what you've been up to.

Blue Beach ... new adventures.

Introducing a friend to a place that is special to you is a doubly wonderful experience.  You get to see the place through fresh eyes and remind yourself of why you like it so much in the first place

If you like rambling beach walks, exploring and fossils; Blue Beach ticks all the boxes; so that's where Donna and I went on Wednesday.

We went looking for an old tunnel I'd heard about.  I don't know it's purpose; I suspect it's for drainage.  We tramped a couple of kilometres down the shore and found it.  

  

The walk was made slower by us stopping to take photos of all sorts of beautiful things: driftwood roots; rock formations; silly dogs leaping onto rocks ...

That was the rock formation and this is the silly dog.

We stopped for a picnic lunch.  Sooki had gone for a swim near the tunnel and had begun to shiver.

Hence her getup.  That's MY sweatshirt she's sporting.  

The fossils on Blue Beach are not dinosaur fossils, but are from 350 million years ago.  Ms. Wiki tells us that the cliffs are soft shale and sandstone.  They erode rapidly because of the high tides combined with winter freeze-thaw conditions, creating continuous opportunities for new discoveries.

Most of the fossils are ripples, mud cracks, worm tracks, rare plant impressions and traces of foot prints or tail drags.

  

Pretty rock formations were around us,

above us, 

and below our feet.

We wandered down the shore, where we caught a glimpse of the now abandoned Horton Bluff Lighthouse.

We'd spent six hours walking, keeping an eye on the tides and scouring the ground.  Donna made the best find of the day.  We think it's the impression of the bark of a tree.  The bark of a tree that had died 350 million years ago !

We had a fabulous day.

Before we left we were already talking of returning to Blue Beach.